China Isn't the Enemy – It's an Investing Opportunity

On this week's Stansberry Investor Hour, Dan and Corey welcome their colleague Whitney Tilson back to the show. Whitney is the editor of multiple newsletters at Stansberry Research, including our flagship Stansberry's Investment Advisory, Commodity Supercycles, and the free Whitney Tilson's Daily. Whitney kicks things off by discussing how he became a "make money" investor, his simple method for picking winning stocks, and a few lessons he has learned from decades in the market. He advises listeners to let their winners run and to hold them for a long period of time, as that's the only way to outperform index funds. Whitney also shares the story of missing out on Netflix's 100-bagger gains, makes a bullish case for Salesforce, and gives his thoughts on particular players in the AI space, such as Palantir Technologies. (0:00) Next, Whitney talks about the cannabis stock bubble, scam Chinese stocks, and why he's "pounding the table" on Alphabet and Meta Platforms. Using Adobe as an example, he tells listeners to start considering how AI will affect existing businesses and their share prices, especially if it's in negative ways. Plus, he goes in depth on index funds – their benefits, how his strategy has shifted to include market-cap-neutral funds, and which funds he likes today. (22:28) Finally, Whitney explains the power of compounding and discusses the opportunity today in clothing maker Lululemon. Despite "really struggling with" the stock, he believes it could be a big winner down the line. The secret, Whitney says, is finding good companies with headwinds that knock the stock way down but that are temporary. And to close the show out, Whitney covers the pitfalls of short selling, why you should never bet against companies that make products people love, and his most speculative stock idea today. (41:59)

On this week's Stansberry Investor Hour, Dan and Corey are joined by Kevin Duffy. Kevin is the founder and editor of The Coffee Can Portfolio newsletter. He's also co-founder and principal of the investment-management firm Bearing Asset Management. Kevin kicks off the show by talking about The Coffee Can Portfolio, the investors who have inspired his work, and his outlook on some long-term secular trends, including fiat currencies. He explains that most trends today harken back to the American Revolution, as that was when centralization really began in the U.S. Kevin walks listeners through several key points in history that got us to where we are today. Plus, he explores the false beliefs of the dot-com boom, the market's current euphoria around AI, and the obvious threat to Nvidia that many investors are overlooking. (0:42) Next, Kevin dives deep on China. He discusses what he has learned by studying the country's stock market, why he's bullish on Chinese stocks, and the 50% discount that these stocks offer. Using Japan as an example, Kevin advises listeners to always question the popular economic narrative, as it can be completely wrong, especially at the end of major manias. He says the biggest culprits behind China's negative narrative today are the U.S. government and misplaced anger over worsening living standards. (18:45) Finally, Kevin talks about the flaws in modern economics and financial logic, the importance of educating oneself on economics and learning from past mistakes, and the future consequences of the U.S. isolating itself while the rest of the world comes together. He says there are still some stock opportunities in the U.S., but the best opportunities are in Asia. (37:14)

On this week's Stansberry Investor Hour, Dan and Corey welcome Marc Chaikin back to the show. Marc is the founder of our corporate affiliate Chaikin Analytics and a market veteran of more than 50 years. Marc kicks off the show by explaining why he's bullish through the first quarter of next year, the implications behind a Federal Reserve rate-cutting cycle, the opportunity today in homebuilders and biotech, and what's happening in the bond market with the "bond vigilantes." He breaks down the three factors driving the market right now and lists a few "less obvious" sectors and companies that are benefiting from these factors. (1:04) Next, Marc discusses his Power Gauge system and how it gives you an inside look into what folks on Wall Street are doing. After, he delves into how the current AI boom resembles the dot-com boom, a "mini bubble in the making" for data-management company Oracle, and China being behind gold's soaring price. Using the Power Gauge in real time, Marc gives listeners several gold-mining and construction stocks that are rated bullish by his system. (18:31) Finally, Marc reminds listeners that small caps were the real winners when the dot-com bubble burst, so that could happen again when the AI bubble inevitably bursts. This leads to a conversation about the late investment adviser Marty Zweig and his timeless advice for investors. Then, to close the show out, Marc speaks about the significance of this leg of the bull market being fueled by capital spending rather than customers... millennials investing in stocks... and fundamentals not mattering for younger investors. (36:39)

On this week's Stansberry Investor Hour, Dan and Corey welcome Edwin Dorsey back to the show. Edwin is the founder and editor of The Bear Cave newsletter, in which he conducts deep, investigative analyses of public companies for his 80,000-plus subscribers. Edwin kicks things off by discussing The Bear Cave and his extensive work exposing corporate misconduct. He says, currently, his favorite companies to find for shorting purposes are those that are going to be hurt by technological innovations. Edwin gives education-support company Chegg as one example of a business that has already been disrupted by AI and has been employing questionable cancellation practices. And he discusses the growing market for lab-grown diamonds and how that will harm traditional retailers such as Signet Jewelers. (1:22) Next, Edwin talks about QMMM, a U.S.-listed Chinese company whose stock is being manipulated by overseas groups. He goes in depth on the manipulation tactics these groups use on social media to pump and dump shares of unprofitable companies, why it's so difficult to pinpoint the scammers and investors running this dark network, the investigative research he's doing to stay up to date on the scams, and how crowdsourcing from the community has helped increase awareness. (18:33) Finally, Edwin warns listeners that the overseas scammers will often engage in after-hours market manipulation, so the best time to short the companies is intraday. He further advises listeners not to take large positions because there is so much volatility in these scam companies. This leads to a conversation about why Edwin has never criticized electric-vehicle maker Tesla in his newsletter, the legendary saga of Netflix ex-CEO Reed Hastings responding publicly to short seller Whitney Tilson, and which sectors Edwin believes will be hardest hit by AI. (36:49)

On this week's Stansberry Investor Hour, Dan and Corey welcome Joel Litman back to the show. Joel is the founder and chief investment officer of our corporate affiliate Altimetry, where his team uses their Uniform Accounting system to look beyond the as-reported numbers in financial reports to see how companies are really performing.   Joel kicks things off by discussing the resilience of the U.S. stock market, which has takenmany professional investors by surprise. He states that historically, tariffs have not been a tax on consumers, with exporters absorbing 50% to 60% of costs to maintain their market share. Joel also argues that the U.S. dollar continues to be strong and that despite recession woes, corporate credit shows the economy is persistent. (0:00)   Next, Joel urges folks not to give in to the "fear of getting in" (the counterpart to the "fear of missing out"). Because investors are seeing new highs, they think they've missed out on buying in, but Joel says that's a mistake. Joel also shares his thoughts on the usage of AI and how many concerns over it replacing the entire workforce are unwarranted. Additionally, he says that the investment advice it provides is often incorrect and that is should be used as a supplement to research instead. (26:36)   Finally, Joel reflects along with Dan and Corey on Nobel Prize-winning economist Eugene Fama and the scope of his knowledge. Joel also provides a brief explanation of what he and his team look for at Altimetry. And he provides a glimpse of some of his latest research.(45:41)

On this week's Stansberry Investor Hour, Dan and Corey welcome Chris Irons to the show. Chris started writing about finance back in 2013 under the moniker Quoth the Raven and was a speaker at the 2019 Stansberry Conference. Chris kicks things off by addressing tariffs and shares how nominal prices will continue to rise regardless of what we do. He says the cycle of crashes and money-printing has continued to accelerate and create bigger distortions and drops. And he discusses passive bids that pile into the S&P 500 Index and cause valuations to become stretched. He warns against overexposure to the fund due to potential drawdowns in any of the "Magnificent Seven" that could take the index down with them. (0:00) Next, Chris states that the market has gone "all in" on options instead of equities, creating a state of leveraged gambling. And he predicts that things have changed so much that despite the beliefs that there will continue to be government bailouts or other solutions, this cannot continue. Something will break eventually. However, it's not all doom and gloom. Chris says you just have to find where there's good value. (24:06) Finally, Chris shares advice on how to hedge any large market crashes based on his own strategies. He also cautions against buying into assets in blind hope of reaching a bottom. If a company is burning money without generating any cash, there won't be a bottom to bounce off of. (42:19)

On this week's Stansberry Investor Hour, Dan welcomes Joe Boskovich to the show. Joe is the founder of Old West Investment Management, an investment firm focused on finding high-quality companies with deep value.   Joe kicks things off by sharing his background in company management. He states that he uses his past experience to evaluate how the companies he considers investing in are being run. Examining the steps management takes and how they behave will reflect their long-term goals with the company and if the correct actions are being taken to help the company succeed. And Joe says one of the easiest ways to gain insight is by seeing how they're being paid. (0:00)   Next, John compares the differences between deep-value companies and distressed companies, showing how one that might appear to be "junk" might have potential if it's run well. And while folks love the big tech companies, most don't think about the metals that are needed in the products that they manufacture, which are where the bigger opportunities lie. (20:41)   Finally, Joe and Dan talk about company scale and how companies should handle expanding locations. And Joe mentions how stock picking has become "a lost art" due to investors putting their money into indexes and exchange-traded funds. He shares several companies in the homebuilding sector that have caught his attention. And he warns about selling your stocks too soon. Joe views his investing as a "partnership" with the companies that he wants to own in the long run. (41:05)

On this week's Stansberry Investor Hour, Dan welcomes value investor Tobias Carlisle back to the show. Tobias is the founder and portfolio manager of Acquirers Funds, a deep-value investment firm. He's also an author and host of the Acquirers Podcast. Tobias kicks things off by discussing the "happy hunting ground" in small-cap stocks, the market narrowing in the S&P 500 Index, and the massive amounts of capital flowing into AI. He also compares the AI mania today with the dot-com boom of the late '90s, questions how AI is making money, and notes that the bottom 490 stocks in the S&P 500 have been in a "little recession" since 2022. He says this gives value investors an opportunity right now to get great names for cheap before the inevitable rebound. After that, Tobias comments on passive investing, what could be in store for the top 10 large caps, and why fears of AI destroying the jobs market are overblown. (0:00) Next, Tobias talks about his company's two funds: the Acquirers Fund (ZIG) and Acquirers Small and Micro Deep Value Fund (DEEP). He explains what he looks for when picking stocks and how he determines valuations. He also name-drops many stocks and industries that he thinks have fantastic potential over the next decade. (21:01) Finally, Tobias discusses the significance of hedge-fund shorts of the small-cap Russell 2000 Index peaking recently, plus the extreme concentration of the top 10 stocks. He notes that Nvidia now accounts for 8% of the S&P 500's market cap – the highest in history. Tobias says that valuations will eventually come back down to Earth and that not all of the Mag Seven will be top performers in the future. Citing Tesla as the weakest in the group, he points out that Chinese electric vehicles beat Tesla cars in terms of price, design, and charging times. Tobias then closes things out with a conversation about an "echo boom" of 2021, cryptocurrencies being back in favor, and the unprecedented outperformance of large caps. (37:31)

On this week's Stansberry Investor Hour, Dan and Corey welcome J.C. Parets to the show. J.C. is a Chartered Market Technician and editor of the Everybody's Wrong newsletter. He's also the founder of All Star Charts – a research platform for both professional and retail investors which tracks U.S. and international stocks, interest rates, commodities, and foreign exchange markets.  J.C. kicks things off by discussing the difference between market technicians and "chartists," the fact that valuations and fundamentals no longer drive stock prices, and the "big bullies" that trickle down to the individual stock level and move markets. He delves into the topic of positioning and finding parts of the market where folks are too bullish or too bearish. For example, J.C. points out that small caps are currently vulnerable for a squeeze. After that, he gives listeners the "cheat code" for analyzing the market, including what to look for, how to cut through the "noise machine" of financial media, how to spot changes in trends, and how to distinguish reality from narrative. (0:35) Next, J.C. walks through a hypothetical trade in the small-cap Russell 2000 Index to demonstrate his thought process and how exactly he finds opportunities. He highlights relative strength, waiting for a change in trend, weighing risk versus reward, not taking profits too early, and his unique position-sizing strategy. J.C. also emphasizes the importance of continually asking yourself how you could be wrong once you've formulated a thesis. As he says, if you can't answer the question and don't know how the market could prove your thesis wrong, "It's not an investment. It's a religion [based on belief alone]." This leads J.C. to talk about overcoming human emotion, having a plan before entering a trade, and taking advantage of all the emotional investors who don't have a plan. (19:48) Finally, J.C. throws out a few areas of the market he likes today and is following closely for opportunities, explains how he decides the right time to enter and add to a trade, and gives listeners solid advice for risk management. "If you're in a trade that's losing, you're going to be distracted, and you're going to miss the giant elephant that's walking right past you," J.C. quips. And he closes the show out with a conversation about investing discipline, including not entering risky trades even if you know they'll go up. (37:21)

On this week's Stansberry Investor Hour, Dan and Corey welcome Eugene Fama to the show. Eugene is a Nobel Prize-winning economist and widely recognized as the "father of modern finance." Eugene kicks things off by talking a bit about his efficient-market hypothesis, whether he believes it's still relevant in today's economy, and how passive investing plays a role in all this. He also discusses what it's like winning a Nobel Prize, the impact of his five-factor model on investing and the rise of factor-based funds, rationality versus irrationality, and the importance of luck in markets. (0:34) Next, Eugene argues against a New York Times article claiming that a PhD in economics won't bring affluence or prestige anymore, laments the lack of new breakthroughs in financial theory/modeling, and comments on the modern competitive environment in economics that didn't exist 60 years ago. Things then take a more personal turn, and Eugene talks about his how he discovered his love of economics and what he wanted to focus his research on. (16:28) Finally, Eugene shares what it was like in Chicago back when the city was the epicenter of financial research, including his experience working with some other notable economists. After that, he gives his opinion on market bubbles. Speaking about the dot-com era, he says that the total value created from the industry is a big part of international wealth today, so it can't be considered a mistake. And he closes things out with a conversation about uncertainty in making predictions. (30:34)